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Biomedical subjects

W H Herman

Publications and source records attributed to W H Herman.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

Trends in cigarette smoking and physicians' advice to quit smoking among people with diabetes in the U.S.

OBJECTIVE: This study describes changes in the distribution of cigarette smoking and in physicians' advice to quit smoking among the U.S. population with and without diabetes from the mid-1970s to 1990. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Data on self-reported smoking status, physicians' advice to quit smoking, history of diabetes, and demographic characteristics were obtained from the 1974, 1985, and 1990 National Health Interview Surveys. We examined the age-adjusted prevalence of smoking and physicians' advice to quit smoking by race, sex, and educational level among individuals with diabetes and those without diabetes. RESULTS: The prevalence of smoking decreased 9.8 percentage points from 1974 to 1990 among individuals with diabetes (from 35.6 to 25.8%, P < 0.01) and 11.7 percentage points among those without diabetes (from 37.3 to 25.6%, P < 0.01). For all years, younger individuals, men, and people with less than a high school education were more likely to smoke, regardless of diabetes status. Among individuals who had ever smoked, those with diabetes were more likely to have received advice to quit than those without diabetes; from 1974 to 1990, the percentage advised to quit smoking by a physician increased from 35.1 to 58.4% for smokers with diabetes and from 26.8 to 46.0% for smokers without diabetes. CONCLUSIONS: Despite decreases in smoking prevalence over time, people with diabetes are still as likely to smoke as those without diabetes. More than 40% of smokers with diabetes currently report never having received advice from a physician to quit smoking. Health care providers should increase their efforts to reduce smoking among people with diabetes.

Adolescent↗

Diabetes care policies and practices in Michigan nursing homes, 1991.

OBJECTIVE: To describe local standards of care for nursing home patients with diabetes, to characterize the care that nursing home patients with diabetes receive in Michigan, and to determine if the care provided meets local and national standards. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: In March 1991, a questionnaire was administered and chart reviews were conducted as part of the Medical Review and Nursing Evaluation conducted by the Michigan Department of Public Health. The questionnaire was completed by the head nurses at 17 skilled nursing homes to learn about local institutional standards of care. Chart reviews were conducted on a sample of five patients with diabetes from each nursing home to describe the care provided and to compare it with local and national standards. RESULTS: Almost all nursing homes had some diabetes care orders or protocols. Standing orders were most often present to guide nutritional and nursing care (e.g., diet, blood glucose monitoring, foot care). Standing orders were less often present to guide medical care (e.g., blood glucose parameters to contact physician) and surveillance of complications (e.g., eye exams). In general, the care provided did not meet local or national standards for diabetes care. Care practices were closer to national standards when registered dietitians (RDs) participated in meal planning and written institutional policies existed. CONCLUSIONS: In this sample of Michigan nursing homes, those with RDs and standing orders provided care more in keeping with guidelines. There is room for improvement in diabetes care practices in nursing homes. It may be time for diabetes-related organizations to re-examine standards for diabetes care in nursing homes.

Aged↗

The epidemiology of diabetes and pregnancy in the U.S., 1988.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of pregnancy complicated by diabetes in a representative sample of the U.S. population. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: We analyzed data from a multistaged cross-sectional probability sample of live births recorded in the U.S. in 1988 for women 15-49 years of age. The main outcome measure was pregnancy complicated by diabetes. RESULTS: Diabetes was present in congruent to 154,000 (4%) of all pregnancies in the U.S. Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) accounted for 135,000 of such pregnancies (88%), non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) for 12,000 (8%), and insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus for 7,000 (4%). On average, the mothers with NIDDM (29.6 years) and GDM (29.3 years) were older than mothers whose pregnancies were not complicated by diabetes (26.2 years; P < 0.05). In multivariate analyses, the odds of having a pregnancy complicated by GDM increased significantly with maternal age and body mass index. CONCLUSIONS: Pregnancy is complicated by diabetes more often than was previously believed. More frequent testing may further increase the apparent prevalence of GDM.

Adolescent↗

PGE2 induces c-fos expression by a cAMP-independent mechanism in glomerular mesangial cells.

Prostanoids induce expression of several immediate-early genes, but the molecular mechanisms underlying these responses remain poorly characterized. We studied induction of the proto-oncogene c-fos by PGE2 in mesangial cells as a model of gene regulation by prostanoids. PGE2 induced marked and transient accumulation of c-fos mRNA. Addition of exogenous 8-bromo-cAMP or forskolin failed to induce c-fos mRNA, suggesting that activation of an EP2 receptor linked to adenylate cyclase did not account for induction of c-fos by PGE2. These data contrast with previous experiments in NIH 3T3 cells in which PGE2 induced c-fos by a cAMP-dependent mechanism. Depletion of protein kinase C blocked induction of c-fos mRNA by PGE2, whereas a protein tyrosine kinase inhibitor had no effect. We further showed that PGE2 induces the c-fos gene by increasing the transactivating capacity of the serum-response element. Transient transfections with a CAT fusion gene driven by an AP-1 cis-element demonstrated that although PGE2 markedly induced c-fos, PGE2 did not increase AP-1-driven transcriptional responses. Electrophoretic gel mobility shift assays revealed that PGE2 failed to increase binding of AP-1 complexes to a consensus AP-1 DNA sequence. Taken together, these experiments provide evidence for a cAMP-independent, protein kinase C-dependent pathway linking a PGE2 receptor on the plasma membrane to transcriptional activation in the nucleus. Regulation of gene transcription by PGE2 probably involves c-fos induction without concomitant activation of AP-1.

8-Bromo Cyclic Adenosine Monophosphate↗

Hyperinsulinemia is associated with menstrual irregularity and altered serum androgens in Pima Indian women.

To determine whether hyperinsulinemia is associated with menstrual irregularity or hyperandrogenemia among Pima Indians, a population with a high prevalence of hyperinsulinemia, we retrospectively studied 20 hyperinsulinemic (higher insulin [HI ) and 20 relatively nonhyperinsulinemic (lower insulin [LI]) nondiabetic Pima women 18 to 45 years of age. Reproductive histories were obtained by review of medical records. Stored serum samples were used for measurement of total testosterone, androstenedione, and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate (DHEAS) levels. Fifty percent (nine of 18) of HI women had irregular menses, as compared with none of the LI women (0 of 19, P = .0004). HI women were significantly more obese than LI women. Serum testosterone and androstenedione levels were similar in HI and LI women (median testosterone, 1.13 v 1.13 nmol/L, P = .55; median androstenedione, 3.79 v 3.26 nmol/L, P = .90). Serum DHEAS was lower in HI than in LI women (median, 2.85 v 4.55 mumol/L, P < .01). HI women with irregular menses had significantly higher testosterone levels than HI women with regular menses (median, 1.62 v 0.76, nmol/L, P = .04). Androstenedione and DHEAS levels were not different between these women. In conclusion, the association of obesity, hyperinsulinemia, irregular menstruation, and high testosterone concentration described in the polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCO) also occurs in Pima Indian women. Moreover, low concentrations of DHEAS are associated with hyperinsulinemia in these women.

Adolescent↗

Hypoglycemia counterregulation in elderly humans: relationship to glucose levels.

This study was designed to define the effect of human aging on hypoglycemia counterregulatory mechanisms. A hyperinsulinemic (2 mU.kg-1.min-1) glucose clamp procedure was used to control glucose and insulin levels during stepwise lowering of plasma glucose. Counterregulatory hormones, hepatic glucose production (HGP), glucose utilization, and symptoms of hypoglycemia were studied in 13 healthy young [age 24 +/- 1 (SE) yr] and 11 healthy old (age 65 +/- 1 yr) nondiabetic volunteers on two occasions: 1) at matched euglycemia and 70 and 60 mg/dl (study 1) and 2) at matched euglycemia and 60 and 50 mg/dl (study 2). The old had consistently lower epinephrine (P < 0.005), glucagon (P < 0.02), cortisol (P < 0.05), and pancreatic polypeptide (P < 0.02) responses at the 60-mg/dl glucose step in study 1. However, these differences were no longer detectable at the more severe hypoglycemic stimulus of 50 mg/dl in study 2. A consistent increase in HGP occurred in both groups only at the 50-mg/dl glucose step (study 2) and was not different between young and old. There were also no differences in symptom responses between young and old. In summary, we found that elderly individuals have a subtle impairment of the glucose counterregulatory response during moderate hypoglycemia, but this impairment is no longer detectable during more severe hypoglycemia.

Adult↗

Dyslipidemia and ischemic heart disease mortality among men and women with diabetes.

BACKGROUND: We investigated whether the greater increased risk of ischemic heart disease mortality associated with diabetes among women compared with men could be explained by their more pronounced lipoprotein abnormalities. METHODS AND RESULTS: Seventy-six men and 45 women with diabetes and 327 men and 496 women without diabetes were followed for an average of 16 years in a population-based study. Cox proportional hazards models were used to determine the relative hazard of ischemic heart disease mortality for changes in lipoprotein subfractions after adjustment for age, hypertension, obesity, smoking, exercise, alcohol consumption, and estrogen use (among women). The relative hazard of ischemic heart disease mortality among diabetic women was 1.76 (P = .10) for a 10-mg/dL decrement in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and 3.13 (P = .01) for a 1-U increment in log very-low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (VLDL-C). The risk of ischemic heart disease mortality among diabetic women relative to nondiabetic women for an HDL-C level of 50 mg/dL and a log(e) VLDL-C of 3 (about 20 mg/dL) were 4.1 and 3.4, respectively (P < .05). These lipoprotein changes were not associated with ischemic heart disease mortality among men or among nondiabetic women. CONCLUSIONS: Excess ischemic heart disease mortality among diabetic women is partially explained by deleterious levels of HDL-C and VLDL-C. HDL-C levels of < or = 50 mg/dL and VLDL-C levels of > or = 20 mg/dL appear to predict ischemic heart disease mortality among these women and may help identify women who would benefit most from intervention.

California↗

Abnormal insulin secretion, not insulin resistance, is the genetic or primary defect of MODY in the RW pedigree.

Maturity-onset diabetes of the young (MODY) is a form of non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) associated with autosomal-dominant inheritance. In the RW pedigree, MODY is associated with polymorphic DNA markers on chromosome 20q. To determine the early abnormalities of insulin action and insulin secretion in MODY, we studied nondiabetic members of the RW pedigree with and without the gene marker. Six nondiabetic marker-negative and 5 nondiabetic marker-positive members of the RW pedigree were studied, as were 4 diabetic marker-positive family members. Unrelated, young, healthy subjects served as comparison groups. Insulin action and insulin secretion were assessed with a frequently sampled intravenous glucose tolerance test. Insulin secretion was further assessed during constant glucose infusion by deconvolution of plasma C-peptide and by pulse analysis. The nondiabetic marker-positive group had normal sensitivity to insulin and unimpaired acute insulin response to intravenous glucose (AIRglu). However, the nondiabetic marker-positive group had decreased mean plasma C-peptide concentration and reduced absolute amplitude of insulin secretory oscillations during prolonged glucose infusion. These responses to prolonged glucose infusion were similar to those observed in the diabetic group. No alterations of insulin secretion were observed in the nondiabetic marker-negative family members. Deranged and deficient insulin secretion, and not insulin resistance, appears to be the genetic or primary abnormality that characterizes nondiabetic individuals who are predisposed to MODY in the RW pedigree.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adolescent↗

Diabetes mellitus and cigarette smoking. Findings from the 1989 National Health Interview Survey.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the prevalence of current smoking in the U.S. diabetic population with that of the nondiabetic population. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Using data from the 1989 National Health Interview Survey--a nationally representative sample--we calculated the prevalence of current smoking for 2,405 people with self-reported diabetes and 20,131 people without this condition. RESULTS: Overall, the age-adjusted prevalence of smoking was 27.3% among people with diabetes and 25.9% among people without diabetes. The prevalence of smoking did not differ significantly between participants with and without diabetes when they were stratified by age, sex, race, or education. Black and Hispanic men with diabetes had a higher prevalence of smoking than did white men with diabetes and black and Hispanic men without diabetes, but none of these differences were statistically significant. Among people with diabetes, age, race, sex, and educational status were independent predictors of current smoking in a multiple-logistic regression model. Duration of diabetes was not related to smoking. CONCLUSIONS: These data again emphasize the need to prevent and reduce smoking in the diabetic population. Smoking cessation programs should particularly target people with diabetes who are < or = 44 years of age. Black and Hispanic men are also prime targets for intervention efforts.

Adolescent↗

Expression and differential regulation of Id1, a dominant negative regulator of basic helix-loop-helix transcription factors, in glomerular mesangial cells.

Id is a family of dominant negative helix-loop-helix (HLH) proteins that block cell-specific transcription mediated by basic HLH (bHLH) transcription mediated by basic HLH (bHLH) transcription factors. We have analyzed Id1 expression in mesangial cells as a first step towards understanding the putative role of bHLH transcription factors in cell type-specific gene expression in the kidney. Glomerular mesangial cells expressed an abundant 1.1 kb mRNA transcript for Id1, but in contrast to other cell types Id1 mRNA was expressed in both randomly cycling cells and in serum-deprived, quiescent cultures. When quiescent mesangial cells were treated with serum to re-enter G1, Id1 mRNA levels were rapidly (2-4 h) and transiently down-regulated. Down-regulation of Id1 mRNA following addition of serum to mesangial cells was cell type-specific and contrasted with induction of Id1 by serum in BHK-21 and 3T3 fibroblasts. Down-regulation of Id1 mRNA correlated with mitogenesis and occurred when quiescent cells were treated with growth factors that activate G protein-coupled receptors and receptor protein tyrosine kinases but not with a non-mitogenic cAMP analog. Down-regulation of Id1 by growth factors required de novo protein synthesis, suggesting that a labile protein was involved. Appearance of E-box DNA binding activity in mesangial cell extracts followed down-regulation of Id1 message. Steady state Id1 mRNA levels and E-box DNA binding activity were not tightly correlated, suggesting complex regulation of Id1 activity. mRNA transcripts for E2A gene products were also expressed in mesangial cells, but these cells failed to express mRNAs for MyoA/MyoD-related genes. Collectively, these data demonstrate that Id1 is expressed in renal mesangial cells and suggest that bHLH complexes might be important for transcriptional regulation in the kidney. In addition, the observation that Id1 mRNA is transiently down-regulated by serum in mesangial cells suggests that Id1 gene expression is more complicated than previously appreciated and is tightly regulated in a cell-specific manner.

3T3 Cells↗

Ophthalmic examination among adults with diagnosed diabetes mellitus.

OBJECTIVE: To assess whether adults with diagnosed diabetes in the United States are receiving recommended eye examinations for detection of diabetic retinopathy and what factors are associated with receiving them. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: The design was a cross-sectional survey of the civilian, noninstitutionalized US population 18 years of age or older, based on the 1989 National Health Interview Survey. A multistage probability sampling strategy was used to identify a representative sample of 84,572 persons. A questionnaire on diabetes was administered to all subjects with diagnosed diabetes (n = 2405). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: A dilated eye examination in the past year. MAIN RESULTS: Of all adults with diagnosed diabetes in the United States, only 49% had a dilated eye examination in the past year. This included 57% of people with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM), 55% with insulin-treated non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), and 44% with NIDDM not treated with insulin. Even among diabetics at high risk of vision loss because of retinopathy or long duration of diabetes, the proportion with a dilated eye examination was only 61% and 57%, respectively. By logistic regression, the probability of a dilated eye examination among persons with NIDDM increased with older age, higher socioeconomic status, and having attended a diabetes education class. The probability of a dilated eye examination was not independently related to race, duration of diabetes, frequency of physician visits for diabetes, or health insurance. CONCLUSIONS: About half of adults with diabetes in the United States are not receiving timely and recommended eye care to detect and treat retinopathy. Widespread interventions, including patient and professional education, are needed to ensure that diabetic patients who are not receiving appropriate eye care have an annual dilated eye examination to detect retinopathy and prevent vision loss.

Adult↗

Surveillance for diabetes mellitus--United States, 1980-1989.

PROBLEM/CONDITION: In the United States, diabetes mellitus is the most important cause of lower-extremity amputation and end-stage renal disease; the major cause of blindness among working-age adults; a major cause of disability, premature mortality, congenital malformations, perinatal mortality, and health-care costs; and an important risk factor for the development of many other acute and chronic conditions (e.g., diabetic ketoacidosis, ischemic heart disease, stroke). Surveillance data describing diabetes and its complications are critical to increasing recognition of the public health burden of diabetes, formulating health-care policy, identifying high-risk groups, developing strategies to reduce the burden of this disease, and evaluating progress in disease prevention and control. REPORTING PERIOD COVERED: In this report, data are summarized from CDC's diabetes surveillance system; trends in diabetes and its complications are evaluated by age, sex, and race for the years 1980-1989. DESCRIPTION OF SYSTEM: CDC has established an ongoing and evolving surveillance system to analyze and compile periodic, representative data on the disease burden of diabetes and its complications in the United States. Data sources currently include vital statistics, the National Health Interview Survey, the National Hospital Discharge Survey, and Medicare claims data for end-stage renal disease. RESULTS AND INTERPRETATION: In 1989, approximately 6.7 million persons in the United States reported that they had diabetes mellitus, and a similar number probably had this disabling chronic disease without being aware of it. The disease burden of diabetes and its complications is large and is likely to increase as the population grows older. Effective primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention strategies are needed, and these efforts need to be intensified among groups at highest risk, including blacks. Important gaps exist in periodic and representative data for describing the disease burden. ACTIONS TAKEN: CDC is assisting diabetes control programs in 26 states and one territory. These programs attempt to reduce the burden of diabetes by preventing blindness, lower-extremity amputations, cardiovascular disease, and adverse outcomes of pregnancy among persons with diabetes. Because of important limitations in measuring the burden of diabetes, CDC is exploring sources of surveillance data for blindness, adverse outcomes of pregnancy, and the public health burden of diabetes among minority groups.

Adult↗

Protein kinase C and protein tyrosine kinase activity contribute to mitogenic signaling by endothelin-1. Cross-talk between G protein-coupled receptors and pp60c-src.

Endothelin (ET) peptides are potent growth factors that bind to G protein-coupled receptors. Although short-term signals activated by ET receptors have been extensively characterized, relatively little is known about mitogenic signal transduction. We investigated the ET receptor subtype involved in mitogenic signaling in glomerular mesangial cells and the role of protein kinase C (PKC) and protein tyrosine kinase (PTK) activity. Pertussis toxin attenuates increases in [Ca2+]i by ET-1 but not [3H]thymidine uptake. An ETA-selective receptor antagonist, BQ 123, blocks increments in [Ca2+]i by ET-1 and inhibits [3H]thymidine uptake. A nonselective ETA-ETB receptor antagonist (PD 142893) blocked [3H]thymidine uptake, but ETB receptor-selective agonists (S6c and [Ala1,Ala3,Ala11,Ala15]ET-1(6-21)) were unable to increase [Ca2+]i or [3H]thymidine uptake. Collectively, these data suggest that mitogenic signaling occurs through an ETA receptor subtype in mesangial cells. Experiments with both PKC inhibition and depletion demonstrate that PKC was necessary but not sufficient for mitogenic signaling. ET-1 increased tyrosine phosphorylation of cellular proteins in quiescent mesangial cells that was blocked by preincubation with herbimycin A. Two chemically and mechanistically dissimilar PTK inhibitors (herbimycin A and genistein) blocked [3H]thymidine uptake by ET-1. In addition, herbimycin A attenuated c-fos induction, AP-1 DNA binding, and transcription directed by an AP-1 cis-element in response to ET-1. Taken together, these data suggest that mitogenic signaling by ET-1 also involves a PTK-based mechanism. We further demonstrated that ET-1 stimulated autophosphorylation of pp60c-src and pp60c-src-catalyzed phosphorylation of a peptide substrate specific for PTK activity. That the dose-response relationship for ET-1-induced pp60c-src activation and [3H]thymidine uptake were similar suggests that these events might be functionally linked. Thus, cross-talk between G protein-coupled receptors and nonreceptor PTK such as pp60c-src might be involved in transcriptional regulation and mitogenic signaling by ET-1.

Animals↗

Aging and insulin sensitivity: role of blood pressure and sympathetic nervous system activity.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to determine whether age is a predictor of sensitivity to the peripheral effects of insulin on carbohydrate metabolism independent of the potential influences of the level of sympathetic nervous system (SNS) activity and blood pressure (BP). METHODS: In 60 human subjects (age range 19-78 years), insulin sensitivity, SI, was determined from glucose and insulin levels obtained during an intravenous glucose tolerance test, and plasma norepinephrine (NE) levels were measured to estimate SNS activity. RESULTS: There were age-associated increases in plasma NE level (r = .585; p < .001) and mean arterial BP (r = .516; p < .001), and an age-associated decline in SI (r = -.352; p = .04). However, in stepwise multiple regression analysis, body mass index (BMI) and mean arterial BP were the only independent predictors of SI, accounting for 43% of the variance in SI; age, plasma NE level, plasma epinephrine level, and fasting plasma glucose did not enter the model. Although these results suggest an age-associated decline in insulin sensitivity, this decline appears to be associated with BMI and mean arterial BP rather than aging per se. In addition, the age-associated increase in SNS activity was not found to be an independent predictor of insulin sensitivity. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that in addition to BMI, blood pressure should be considered as another confounding factor in studies of insulin sensitivity in human aging.

Adult↗

Myocardial glucose uptake in patients with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus assessed quantitatively by dynamic positron emission tomography.

BACKGROUND: Animal studies have demonstrated reduced myocardial glucose utilization in the diabetic heart, suggesting abnormalities in glucose transport. This study was designed to evaluate myocardial glucose uptake as assessed by 2-fluoro-(fluorine-18)2-deoxy-D-glucose (FDG) and positron emission tomography (PET) in patients with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) under standardized metabolic conditions. METHODS AND RESULTS: A hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp technique was used during PET data acquisition in nine healthy male volunteers and seven young male patients with a history of IDDM for less than 5 years. Oxidative metabolism was assessed with C-11 acetate, and glucose uptake was quantitatively measured with FDG using Patlak graphic analysis. Hemodynamic data and C-11 acetate kinetics were comparable. Myocardial glucose uptake averaged 0.44 +/- 0.12 mumol.g-1.min-1 in normal subjects and 0.43 +/- 0.16 mumol.g-1.min-1 in patients with IDDM (P = NS). Blood tracer clearance was also similar in both groups as determined by the ratio of peak blood tracer activity to the activity at 55 to 60 minutes after tracer injection. F-18 activity ratio between myocardium and blood pool averaged 7.2 +/- 3.4 in the normal heart and 7.5 +/- 3.0 in the diabetic heart (P = NS). CONCLUSIONS: These data indicate that metabolic standardization and supplementation with insulin in young patients with IDDM is associated with myocardial glucose uptake similar to that observed in the normal heart. Chronic therapy with insulin may prevent the metabolic abnormalities observed in diabetic animal models.

Acetates↗

Effects of epinephrine on insulin secretion and action in humans. Interaction with aging.

This study was designed to define the effects on glucose metabolism of small increases of plasma EPI, comparable to increases observed during physiological sympathoadrenal activation. This study was also designed to determine the effects of EPI on glucose metabolism in older adults, in whom changes in adrenergic responsiveness of several tissues were described. Tolbutamide-boosted IVGTTs were performed during intravenous infusions of saline (control) or EPI at 2.7, 5.5, and 10.9 mmol/min to achieve physiological levels of EPI in 7 young subjects (19-26 yr of age) and 7 old subjects (62-75 yr of age), all with a normal screening OGTT. IVGTT results were analyzed to determine the AIR and with the minimal model method of Bergman to determine SI and SG. A significant fall was observed in AIR, SI, and SG for all subjects, even with the lowest dose of EPI, which resulted in only a two- to threefold increase in plasma EPI. Older subjects had a delayed recovery from hyperglycemia during the EPI infusions, although we detected no significant differences between the young and old subjects in the ability of EPI to alter either acute phase insulin secretion or insulin action. In contrast, the impairment of SG by EPI appeared to be greater in the elderly. We conclude that small increases of plasma EPI can significantly affect determinants of glucose tolerance in both young and old people.

Adult↗

Survey of physician practice behaviors related to diabetes mellitus in the U.S. Physician adherence to consensus recommendations.

OBJECTIVE: To summarize the frequency of physician adherence to consensus recommendations for prevention of diabetic complications. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Survey data from a nationwide stratified probability sample of primary-care physicians were analyzed. Adherence to recommendations were reported by physician specialty, age-group, and type of diabetes treated. RESULTS: Adherence was high for eye exams, blood pressure measurements, neurological and circulatory exams, and laboratory procedures using blood. Adherence was low for examination of the teeth and gums, examination of the feet, and laboratory procedures involving the collection of urine. Internists generally had the highest adherence rates and pediatricians the lowest. Reported adherence decreased with physician age. Adherence was higher for the management of individuals with IDDM than for those with NIDDM. CONCLUSIONS: Recommendations for the care of diabetic individuals need to be more widely implemented. Recommendations targeted specifically to pediatricians may be necessary.

Adult↗